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‘People are tired of hearing what government can’t do’: Democratic Socialists surge nationwide

Fortune – Tech

3h ago

‘People are tired of hearing what government can’t do’: Democratic Socialists surge nationwide

Summary

As Janeese Lewis George paves a path to the mayor’s office in Washington, D.C., she’s told voters they could have it all. Her unapologetically expansive, left-wing agenda includes subsidized or even free childcare, increased down payment assistance for homebuyers and community resources to reduce crime, plus a promise to aggressively confront President Donald Trump’s attempts to reshape the nation’s capital. “People are tired of hearing what government can’t do. They want to hear what government can do,” Lewis George said in an interview before the city’s primary, where she defeated her Democratic opponents and positioned herself to win the general election in November in a city dominated by Democrats. Lewis George’s victory signals a break with a quarter-century of centrist governance in Washington, and it puts her in the vanguard of democratic socialists who have ascended in urban politics over the last year. Zohran Mamdani toppled Andrew Cuomo, the scion of a political dynasty, on his way to becoming New York City mayor. Katie Wilson won an upset victory to lead Seattle last fall. And this month, Nithya Raman clinched a spot in the November runoff against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. All of them are members of the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson was endorsed by the city’s DSA chapter during his 2023 mayoral run but has since faced criticism from both moderate and liberal local leaders on issues such as immigration, the local budget and public safety. Trump’s hardline immigration and law enforcement tactics have also become a challenge for liberal cities.

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DOJ memo stokes fear among disability advocates of a return to institutionalization

The exterior of the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice building is pictured on May 4, 2021, in Washington, D.C. Patrick Semansky/AP hide caption The Justice Department released a memo this week that quietly calls into question decades of civil rights protections for Americans with disabilities and stirred fear and anger among advocates and families. The memo, an opinion from the Office of Legal Counsel, argues that states do not have to provide in-home or community-based care to people with disabilities who need support. These services allow many disabled Americans to continue to live, learn and work at home or in their own communities, among family and friends. "It is now the position of the United States government that people with disabilities don't have a right to be part of their communities," says Alison Barkoff, a health law and policy professor at George Washington University who led disability law and policy efforts during both the Obama and Biden administrations. What's more, the memo argues, the Supreme Court's Olmstead decision "held only that a state cannot institutionalize such patients without justification." But, the memo adds: "What counts as adequate justification remains an open question." At one point, Pettit acknowledges the novelty of this reading: "We recognize that this view of Olmstead 's import is out of step with the common understanding of that decision within the federal courts." "The United States government since 1977 has taken the position that [federal law] includes an integration mandate that requires services to be provided in the most integrated setting appropriate," says professor Barkoff, who worked in the Obama Justice Department leading its Olmstead enforcement efforts. The courts and Congress decided institutionalization should be a last resort because people's personal liberty is at stake, says Jennifer Mathis of the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law: "Who you can see, when you can go out, when you eat, what you eat. Congress makes laws, not agencies. The Justice Department memo appears to be the latest salvo in a broader effort that began on July 24, 2025, when President Trump issued an executive order intended to make it easier for state and local governments to police homelessness.

General U.S. News1h ago

Pauline Hanson’s stance on paid parental leave and childcare could turn clock back by decades, economists warn

One Nation leader appears to suggest women should not be paid by employers while on maternity leave and calls for family income splitting Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast One Nation could wind back the clock by decades for working mothers, damage productivity and worsen gender inequality, economists have warned. In a controversial address to the National Press Club on Wednesday, Pauline Hanson seemed to suggest women should not get paid by their employers while on maternity leave. She also hinted at major changes to the childcare system, and called for income splitting for families to help incentivise a parent staying home with their children. “If women take time off and they are not paid their wages because they’re not working, fair enough. Why should business pay? But they’re not at work. The government paid parental leave scheme from 1 July will offer parents 26 weeks at the national minimum wage. Leonora Risse, an associate professor in economics at Queensland University of Technology, said any move away from paid leave could have serious financial implications for women. “Questioning these policies is actually winding back the clock to many decades back, where it wasn’t an even playing field, and the gender gap was much wider,” Risse said. “It isn’t just the financial implications for women, it is also setting women back in terms of decision-making, having financial independence, having a say, having status and respect in society.” Risse said that competitive paid parental leave ensures that women can remain in the workforce longer term and improve productivity. “If women can sustain their involvement and their attachment to the workforce and to their employer during their child-bearing years, that’s positive for productivity because it maintains a good job match,” she said. “We’ve worked really hard to validate that case and to prove that it has a productivity benefit as well as a wellbeing benefit.” Guardian Australia asked One Nation whether it would continue to support government-funded paid parental leave, but the party did not respond. The policy, which exists in other countries including France, would allow both parents to add their income together and split the total, meaning the income would be subject to two tax-free thresholds. One Nation’s website states the policy will “encourage parents to look after their own children, and reduce the cost to the government of childcare, especially pre-school. It will also encourage homeschooling.” The independent economist Silvia Griselda said policies to try to incentivise women staying at home could lead to skills shortages and a need for higher immigration. “Women, on average, tend to be more educated than men, so if you’re asking half of the workforce to not work … it means that we are kind of limiting the growth and the productivity of the Australian economy. “[And] if there is a shortage of skills in Australia, Australia has to overcome that through immigration.” Risse said income splitting would need to be designed carefully to ensure women could remain financially independent. “One of the ways in which gender equality policies have progressed over time is for women to actually gain the right to have their own bank account, their own financial stream, and not to be dependent,” she said. “Income splitting could sound potentially equitable in practice, but it also introduces potential risk or compromise in terms of women’s financial independence.” Hanson also called for an overhaul of the childcare system, which now costs about $16bn a year.

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‘People are tired of hearing what government can’t do’: Democratic Socialists surge nationwide

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Pauline Hanson’s stance on paid parental leave and childcare could turn clock back by decades, economists warn